When I was younger, I remember watching a show called “Dirty Jobs”. The host would venture into some of the dirtiest and disgusting jobs that keep America going. From sewers and fuel tanks, all the way to animal dung, host Mike Rowe got down and dirty with American workers in jobs that most of us probably never knew existed. The fact is, If it wasn’t for these jobs and the hardworking Americans that handle them, many of the luxuries we enjoy today wouldn’t be a reality. Yet as a people, we have never been more self-focused. Being a servant in today’s world is not something highly sought after. While we know hard work is required, we assume the work is meant for someone else. You probably won’t find many fourth-graders putting ‘sewer cleaner’ on their “what do I want to be when I grow up?” list.
The act of serving and putting oneself below another is not something our culture praises. In fact, our culture pushes aspirations of the “higher places” in society. Elevating the desire to be popular and better off. We love to be pampered and waited on, but seldom consider returning that service. We may comply to the occasional “social norm” of serving; opening doors, saying please and thank you, or even giving leftover funds to charity. But how often do we go out of our way to SERVE someone in need? Will we really inconvenience ourselves to serve one another?
Love is the identifying factor given by Jesus to show we are one of His disciples. How do we love one another? Jesus demonstrated what this love should look like. He got down on His hands and knees to wash the dirty, smelly, disgusting feet of His disciples. In those days everyone wore sandals, walking everywhere they went. They didn’t have paved roads or trails; all they had were dirt paths. You can imagine how gross their feet might be after a several mile walk. It was the job of the lowest servant to wash the guests’ feet when they entered a home. By Jesus doing this act of service, He showed us that our Christ-like love should be setting our status aside and serving those around us.
I don’t know about you, but I struggle with this kind of love. We need to actively seek ways to put others first. We need to retrain our hearts and our priorities, not to match what society outlines for us, but what Jesus Himself outlined for us every day on this earth. We need to look for ways we can set our status aside and take care of those around us. It is because of this need that we’re going to have a youth service day on November 20th. The KCC WIRED YOUTH is going to spend that Saturday afternoon serving those in our church. How? I’m glad you asked. We are going to rake lawns for those in our church who can’t do it themselves. By raking and bagging up leaves, we are going to put Jesus’ words into action.
What are some ways YOU can put Jesus’ words into action? How can YOU serve others the way Jesus asks us to?